Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Decision of Note: <b>Copyright Ruling On Suit Time, Damages</b>
In a case with several notable aspects, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that under Sec. 507(b) of the Copyright Act of 1976, a plaintiff can file suit for alleged infringements that occur more than 3 years before the filing of the complaint, as long as the plaintiff didn't, or reasonably couldn't have, discovered the allegedly infringing activity within the Act's 3-year limitation period. Polar Bear Productions Inc. v. Timex Corp., 03-35188. Polar Bear filed suit claiming that Timex had used beyond a licensing term the promotional footage produced for Timex by the plaintiff.
In addition to its filing-period ruling, the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed the principle that to recover actual damages and the infringer's attributable profits under 17 U.S.C. 504(b), a plaintiff must establish a causal link between infringement and the economic recovery sought. The appeals court then found sufficient evidence of lost licensing fees but called Polar Bear's claim of lost profits based on an alleged inability to fund the production of copies of the footage for individual sales too “pie-in-the-sky.” According to the court, “Although it is hypothetically possible that Polar Bear's business venture would have been more successful if it had greater access to cash, Timex's failure to pay license fees for the use of the footage was not the cause of Polar Bear's inability to put 10,000 copies of [the promotional footage] 'PaddleQuest' on the market. … Importantly, in 1995 Polar Bear had no knowledge of Timex's infringement and certainly could not have relied upon the prospect of payment for Timex's use of 'Paddle-Quest.' Indeed, had Polar Bear been aware of Timex's infringement at that time, its copyright claims would be barred under the 3-year limit imposed by 17 U.S.C. '507(b).”
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.